View full sizeLynn Ischay, Plain DealerLarry Miller is the first president of Global Cleveland.

International students, refugees and boomerangers--former Clevelanders who miss us--could be the stuff of a renaissance. That's the hope of the Global Cleveland Initiative, which cemented its foundation Wednesday when it hired a human resources expert as it first president.

Larry Miller, a top executive at Lubrizol Corp., won't start his new job until October, but he'll find some programs up and running. Many of them focus on people with rare skills and immigrant roots.

Global Cleveland bills itself as a new kind of economic driver. Founders hope to help repopulate the city and boost the local economy by attracting talented newcomers from around the world.

"What we suffer from is not keeping pace with other cities that are growing," said Albert Ratner, co-chairman emeritus of Forest City Enterprises and a member of Global Cleveland's executive board. "Which means you need people."

Where to find them? One effort aims at enticing international students to stay on after graduation and launch a career or business here. Another seeks to find people with expert skills for local jobs that are hard to fill, like in the biomedical industry.

Global Cleveland has already contracted with Upwardly Global, a San Francisco-based agency that helps college-educated refugees rebuild lost careers, in part, by obtaining professional accreditations. Experts say such a program could help to attract other high-skill immigrants.

Some have criticized the agency for not aggressively targeting immigrants, who loom as the most likely source of newcomers. Ratner and other founders argue that Cleveland needs to cast a wide net.

There's no time to lose. Cleveland, once a gateway city, became one of America's fastest declining major cities last decade.

Frosty Tea Party: Newcomers will no doubt arouse curiosity and some suspicion in a city almost entirely native born. A new study suggests that immigrants, especially, can expect a chilly welcome from a vocal political faction.

Voters sympathetic to the Tea Party are more likely to fear change and to harbor negative attitudes toward new Americans, according to researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Vanderbilt University.

Their findings, presented last week at the annual conference of the American Sociological Association, suggests that the Tea Party is an old movement in new packaging, reflecting conservative movements of the past.

International mingling: The Cleveland Council on World Affairs, busy hosting a delegation of international business leaders, is inviting local business people to expand their Rolodexes.

The council will host a happy hour Friday, Sept. 2, with business leaders from 27 nations. The networking commences at 6 p.m. at the 1890 Restaurant at Hyatt Regency Hotel at the Arcade. To register, call 216-255-9006.

Voices of Hungary: Northeast Ohio is home to probably the largest Hungarian-speaking community on the continent, and the Hungarian Scouts deserve much of the credit.

As part of their scouting experience, boys and girls by the hundreds learn to read, write and speak Hungarian.

Next Sunday, Sept. 4, the community will celebrate 60 years of Hungarian scouting in Cleveland with a special edition of the annual Hungarian Scout Festival. The Rajko Hungarian Gypsy Orchestra from Budapest will headline a day of music, food and culture.

The festival runs from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. at the German Central Park, 7863 York Road in Parma. For a schedule, go to www.csbk.org

Cooling flash mobs: The Heights Community Congress plans to continue a discussion of flash mobs and what to do about them at a public forum Monday.

Audience members will be asked to consider questions like, "Where are the parents?" and "What constructive ways can social media be used to find solutions?"

In recent times and in many communities, young people have used social media tools and text messaging to incite disruptive gatherings. A sudden mob of black youths disrupted the Coventry Street Fair on June 26. Cleveland Heights, a community proud of its pro-integration efforts, responded by imposing a strict curfew on teens and canceling a second street fair.

The Congress is seeking lasting solutions to a sensitive diversity issue. Its forum begins at 7 p.m. Aug. 29 at the Cleveland Heights Community Center.

Indians protest corruption: A popular protest in India is inciting passions in Northeast Ohio. Members of the Asian Indian community plan to gather at the Gandhi statue on Martin Luther King Drive Sunday, Aug. 28, to show solidarity with Anna Hazare, the face of India's fight against corruption.

The elderly activist was arrested and briefly jailed in India for threatening to protest corruption with a hunger strike. Supporters plan a silent sit-in at 4 p.m. at the India Cultural Garden.

Summer's last hurrah: The Cleveland Labor Day Oktoberfest, the last major ethnic festival of the season, will celebrate Germanic spirit with oompha bands, brats and beer--while showcasing a wider world.

More than two dozen nationalities will be represented in the William F. Miller International Pavilion. The Cleveland Pops orchestra will stage A Night in Vienna.

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